Nov. 3, 2012
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Game Highlights | Postgame Press Conference | Rubick's View
ALLENDALE, Mich. - The 19th-ranked Grand Valley State football team used a potent rushing attack to control Wayne State on Saturday (Nov. 3) evening at Lubbers Stadium, notching a 35-13 victory in front of 8,977 fans.
The victory moves the Lakers to 8-2 overall with a 7-2 mark in the GLIAC and in sole possession of first place in the GLIAC North. Wayne State falls to 5-4 both overall and in the conference.
After GVSU went three-and-out to begin the game, the Warriors got on the board with a 51-yard field goal from Stefan Terleckyj to go up 3-0.
Beyond that, however, the Lakers took control of the game. On the ensuing drive, sophomore Michael Ratay walked in for a three-yard touchdown run to put GVSU up 7-3 with 7:06 to play in the opening stanza.
After a Wayne State punt on the next drive, a screen pass was intercepted by the Warrior defensive line in GVSU territory, but the Laker defense held strong, forcing another field goal, this time from 46 yards out, to hold the lead at 7-6.
The Lakers again responded, and again it was a three-yard touchdown run from Ratay that put the Lakers up 14-6 just two plays in to the second quarter.
The biggest play of the game, and the coming out party for redshirt freshman Kirk Spencer on this day, was on GVSU's next drive, when Spencer scampered 53 yards nearly untouched for the touchdown to go up 21-6 with 6:33 to play in the first half.
The Lakers threatened to score again before the half was out on their next drive, but another Warrior interception, this time in the endzone, thwarted the opportunity as GVSU went in to the locker room up 21-6.
Spencer had 138 rushing yards at the half, part of 197 first-half rushing yards for the team. The rushing defense for the Lakers was stout, holding Wayne State to 11 yards rushing on 10 attempts in the opening half.
On the first drive of the second half for GVSU, starting at its own 33-yard line, the Lakers got a 57-yard run from Spencer and then a 10-yard slant route from senior Charles Johnson that resulted in his first of two touchdown catches on the day, putting the Lakers up 28-6.
After the two squads exchanged punts on their next drives, Wayne State finally got in the endzone at the end of a 17-play, 83-yard drive that ate up 7:06 off the clock to make it a 28-13 with under a minute left to play in the third quarter.
The scoring in the game was capped off with a seven-yard touchdown pass from sophomore Isiah Grimes to Johnson with 1:29 to play in the game, making it a 35-13 margin that the Lakers would hold on to.
Spencer's day on the ground was nearly record-breaking, as his 228 rushing yards is the fourth-best single game total in school history and the most for a Laker since 2009. Spencer also had a touchdown, all on 17 carries, a 13.4 yards per carry average. Ratay finished with a big day as well on the ground, going for 118 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries. As a team, the Lakers had 319 yards, the most since last season's 317 in the season finale against Saginaw Valley State. It is the second week in a row that both Spencer and Ratay have surpassed the century mark. Both accomplished the feat against Hillsdale last weekend, when Ratay went for 114 and Spencer had 100.
Grimes finished the game 15-for-23 passing for 204 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. 10 of those completions, 112 of the yards and both touchdowns went to Johnson with his sixth 100-yard receiving game of the season.
Defensively, sophomore Jack Sauber posted a career-high 10 tackles, while junior Charles Hill had a big day. Hill tallied 10 tackles as well, 2.5 for loss including 1.5 sacks and two quarterback hurries.
Senior Jarrod Cox, on senior night, collected nine tackles, 1.5 for loss, while sophomore Bobby Wunderlich and juniors Luther Ware and Lucas Kozuch each had a sack.
GVSU, with its 8-2 record, will head on the road for the regular season finale next week to take on rival Saginaw Valley State University on Saturday, November 10th at 1:00 p.m.
